Progressive Democrat Issue 49: BOYCOTT REMINDERS

Boycotts are not easy, but when used with determination, they often work. Not always, but they work enough that they are worth doing. The right boycotts far more often than the left, so companies are more likely to listen to the right than to the left. They lose little business if they anger leftists, but they do lose business if they anger the right.

We have to change that. The only way to do that is through action—boycotts and letter writing.

Here is a daily Kos diary listing the 25 top Republican donors.

As some of the comments in the diary indicate, the list is really only a starting point. I recommend looking it over as a first step towards deciding what YOU want to boycott. But it is an easy place to start. If all you want is a list to take with you when you go to the store, this is a pretty good one.

It takes a little more work, but BuyBlue.org is a good site to look up companies and find out how much they donate to Republicans and Democrats. This way you can compare and decide for yourself rather than rely on someone else’s list. The other thing you can do is click on each company and send them an email or FAX TELLING them you are boycotting or supporting them and why. This is pretty important because letters often have more impact that a boycott alone. So focusing on a few companies but writing them frequently telling them you are watching them can be more effective than boycotting the whole list of 25 top Republican donors without writing letters.

Here is a difficult one. Many of the worst companies and biggest Republican donors are tobacco companies. I would not be honest if I didn’t point out that one of the best ways to boycott Republican and irresponsible companies is to give up smoking. I realize this is difficult and the choice is of course yours. But it is something to keep in mind. And, of course, this is a boycott action that can save you lots of money in the long run.


Finally, there are two ongoing, very focused boycotts that are MOST important: Wal-Mart and Exxon/Mobil. Write letters and make phone calls to Exxon/Mobil.

Alternatives to Exxon/Mobil are Sunoco and Citgo. Sunoco tends to be neutral with not much good or bad about it. It donates mostly to Democrats and buys little of its oil from Saudi Arabia. Citgo is a Venezuelan company so most of their oil is local, not from Saudi Arabia. Hugo Chavez, the President of Venezuela, is a democratically elected leftist who is a huge thorn in the right’s side. His personality and policies are controversial, but he is a leftist who is a major target of people like Bush and Pat Robertson. So, as a protest of Bush and Robertson’s views, many are patronizing Citgo.

Two other more controversial companies are Chevron/Texaco and BP/Arco. Both donate mostly to Republicans. Both have some very bad environmental issues. But, Chevron also is one of the only oil companies that is proactive in its environmental and social policies. They have done a great deal to create an environmental and social policy that will avoid costly cleanups, poor worker morale, and will help get contracts with nations like Norway that require a high standard of environmental care. BP/Arco is one of the few oil companies that actually invests NOW in alternative energy sources rather than just “research” it. But many feel that BP’s environmentalism is mainly PR rather than practice. So, these two companies are by and large better than Exxon/Mobil, but debatably so.

And, of course, the best ways to boycott an oil company is to drive less, buy a hybrid and carpool. These actions can also save you money in the long run.

Wal-Mart is one of the worst companies in America. Their labor practices, treatment of women employees and their destruction of small businesses are extremely regressive. A good alternative is Costco.

Here is information on Wal-Mart’s anti-union policies.

Here is a Co-op America “No Wal-Mart” Holiday Page.

Here is the “Wake-up Wal-Mart” Campaign.

And here is a list of Wal-Mart boycott meetups where you can help organize against Wal-Mart in your community.

Keep up the pressure on these companies and spread the word. Each person boycotting and each letter sent to these companies the more effective our efforts will be.